Kalookan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David kneels before Pope Francis as he is officially inducted to the Sacred College of Cardinals. 📷 Screenshot from Vatican News livestream

MANILA - If history would serve as the basis, Kalookan Bishop Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David's elevation to the Sacred College of Cardinals was indeed a surprise.

He is the first Filipino cardinal who is not an archbishop when he was chosen by the pope.

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He is also the first from the Diocese of Kalookan, a two-decades-old ecclesiastical territory carved out from the Archdiocese of Manila in 2003.

And because the Diocese of Kalookan is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Manila, this makes it the first time in the Philippines that there are two cardinals in a single ecclesiastical province - David and Manila Archbishop Jose Cardinal Advincula.

With David's induction into the College of Cardinals, it is also the first time that there are five living Filipino cardinals.

Aside from David and Advincula, there are:

- Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization;

- Orlando Cardinal Quevedo, archbishop emeritus of the Archdiocese of Cotabato; and

- Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales, archbishop emeritus of the Archdiocese of Manila.  

David is also the first Filipino prelate who was created a cardinal during his term as president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines. Rosales, Sin, and Vidal were already cardinals when they became presidents of the bishops' conference.  

"It felt like being caught in a whirlwind. I put down the phone and did a five-minute breathing exercise, which instantly calmed me down," David said, describing how he felt when he learned that the pope had named him a cardinal.

But under Pope Francis's pontificate, the choice of the 65-year-old prelate, who happily insists on being called Ambo, should come as no surprise.

Traditionally, cardinals are plucked from major archdioceses across the world.

But Pope Francis veered away from this practice and instead chose cardinals from what he calls the "peripheries" of the world.

The pope has picked cardinals who are known to serve the poor, those who are from countries where Christians are a minority or persecuted, and those whose pastoral style favors a more welcoming Church.

David has always been what Vatican observers call a "Francis bishop."

Throughout his 11 years as the head of the Catholic Church, Francis has emphasized the plight of the poor and other marginalized people.

He has repeatedly called for Church officials to "have the smell of the sheep," to be close to ordinary people instead of living like monarchs.

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David's pastoral track parallels that of the pope.

"Kapag ramdam mo 'yung pinagdadaanan ng tao, alam mo 'yung sasabihin mo sa kanila... Alam mo din 'pag hindi mo sila nakakausap. Hindi mo napapalakas ang loob nila, hindi mo inaabot ang mga tao," David said in an interview with CBCP News.

"I don't think we can preach effectively to people kung hindi tayo naka-immerse sa kalagayan nila ."

(When you feel the experiences of the people, you know what to tell them. You know in yourself when you don't speak to them. You are not able to encourage them, you are not capable of reaching out to the people.)

Ironically, David's status as a cardinal makes him a "prince of the Church" as cardinals are equal in rank to secular princes.  

Cardinals are addressed as "eminence" and wear the distinctive scarlet attire.

But like Pope Francis, David does not approve of the princely title.

He said the color red is a reminder of their readiness to be a martyr for Christ just like the apostles.

"It's a call to martyrdom. Tingnan mo naman halos lahat ng apostol martyrs, 'di ba?" he said.

(If you look at it, almost all the apostles were martyrs.)

"Most of them died a violent death kaya 'pag inuugnay natin 'yung red sa honor, title, and recognition, we are totally losing the significance of the color."

(Most of them died a violent death and so if we relate the color red to honor, title, and recognition, we are totally losing the significance of the color.)

A CARDINAL FOR THE LOCAL CHURCH

As tradition dictates, David was assigned a titular church in Rome just like the other cardinals.

Pope Francis appointed him cardinal-priest of the Church of the Transfiguration of Our Lord Jesus Christ (Chiesa della Trasfigurazione di Nostro Signore Gesù Cristo).

While several clergymen who were created cardinals were called to the Vatican to hold administrative positions in the Curia, David expects that he would remain as bishop of Kalookan.

Tagle was archbishop of Manila when he was appointed prefect in a Vatican department. Cardinal Sanchez, on the other hand, served as prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy (now called a dicastery) and president of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See.

But David believes he was chosen by the pope in the context of him being a local pastor.

"I would presuppose that I just stay in Kalookan and continue to serve as a bishop of the local church of Kalookan," he said.

Aside from being CBCP president, David is also the vice president of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences. He is also a member of the synod council.

In 2019, David received the backing of Pope Francis after getting death threats amid his scathing criticism of former president Rodrigo Duterte's bloody war on drugs.

His diocese, which comprises the secular territories of Malabon, Navotas, and the southern portion of Caloocan, saw several young victims who were killed during the former administration's violent campaign against illegal drugs.  

As a cardinal, David recalled the threats he received and the titular bishop before him who was martyred.

"Hindi naman sa gusto naming magpakamatay o magpakamartir... we will not run from danger," he said.  

David's episcopal motto is "kenosis," which means "self-emptying" and is used to refer to Jesus's ultimate expression of humility when He became a man and offered His life for man's salvation.

"Kung takot akong mamatay sana hindi na lang ako nag-bishop. Para kung ang kaya ko lang iprotekta buhay ko, sarili ko, I cannot protect my flock, ba't pa ko nag-obispo," he said. 

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